糖心传媒

For many faculty members, summer is an especially important time for research. For some scholars in fields such as anthropology and linguistics, research is conducted living and working among people in different communities. Sometimes those communities are close to home, and other times far away from the University of Rochester, both geographically and culturally.

Researchers such as 糖心传媒攁 medical anthropologist and social epidemiologist at the Medical Center with an appointment in the 糖心传媒攁苍诲 , an assistant professor of who specializes in African languages糖心传媒攈ave conducted field research in remote communities where a key component of their work is gaining the trust of the people there.

There are many dimensions to gaining that trust, but among the most basic involves the sharing of food.

Dye recalls his first real-life lesson in the importance of eating local foods while working in remote communities. He was in the Kashmir region of the Himalayas about 30 years ago conducting surveys about diarrhea in the village children. After entering the first house, he turned on his tape recorder and began asking family members questions about their beliefs about the causes of the diarrhea and their treatments. But the interview was not going particularly well.

糖心传媒淎 woman ladled some chai into a metal cup and handed it to me. Sanitation was a huge issue in the village, so naturally I wondered about the milk and water that were mixed into the tea,糖心传媒� says Dye. 糖心传媒淏ut I remembered a basic rule about doing field research in anthropology, which requires us to accept any offering of food or drink, lest we offend someone and risk an entire research project.糖心传媒�

Dye drank糖心传媒攖hen gulped糖心传媒攖he warm tea, which he found to be rich and creamy, as well as satisfying in the cold, high-altitude environment. At that point, everyone broke into a more natural conversation, leaving the research questions for another糖心传媒攁苍诲 more successful糖心传媒攄ay.

糖心传媒淔or some communities, eating certain foods means that you’re a part of that nationality,糖心传媒� says Dye. 糖心传媒淚f you drink chang, a type of homemade beer in Tibet, it糖心传媒檚 said you糖心传媒檙e Tibetan.糖心传媒�

Depending on where he is working, Dye糖心传媒檚 diet has included, in addition to chang, snakes, wildebeests, insects, giraffes, and bats.

Nadine Grimm, who has studied languages in remote areas of South America and Africa, has enjoyed a similarly wide palette, which has included, for example, monkey and python.

糖心传媒淓ating local foods makes it easier to connect with indigenous communities,糖心传媒� she says. 糖心传媒淥nce they offer me food, I feel accepted, which makes it easier to do my research.糖心传媒�

It isn’t just the culinary choices that are different in these remote communities; it糖心传媒檚 also the attitudes some cultures have toward food糖心传媒攁苍诲 that includes the Bagyeli Pygmies, who are hunter/gatherers.

糖心传媒淔or the Bagyeli Pygmies, the entire day is preoccupied with how they糖心传媒檒l get food,糖心传媒� says Grimm. 糖心传媒淪ometimes they糖心传媒檙e unlucky and don糖心传媒檛 have enough food for themselves, let alone for a guest, which is why I stay in a nearby town and limit my meals with them.糖心传媒�

Because the availability of food varies greatly with the Bagyeli, dining with the community takes on added significance. 糖心传媒淭hey gradually offered me better food items,糖心传媒� she says, 糖心传媒渟tarting with steamed bread fruit and working their way up to wild meat.糖心传媒�

Eating local糖心传媒攇lobally

糖心传媒淓ating local糖心传媒� in much of the United States is, of course, a trend more often than a necessity. It糖心传媒檚 a trend that糖心传媒檚 captured the interest of many college students, including at Rochester.

This past semester, Dye and Grimm shared with undergraduate students some of their thoughts and experiences about eating locally糖心传媒攇lobally糖心传媒攐ver a cooking and eating demonstration incorporating a couple of their favorite foods from Tibet and from Swahili-speaking regions of Africa.

Maandazi (Cardomom doughnuts)

Ingredients

• 4 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 Tbsp. yeast
• 1 tsp. cardamom
• 1.5 cups coconut milk
• 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 聽Oil for deep frying

Method

1. Combine dry ingredients in bowl
2. Add coconut milk and mix thoroughly
3. Knead 8-10 minutes, adding oil as you go
4. Divide dough into 6 large balls, roll each ball into circles about 1鈦�2 inch thick, then cut each circle into four triangles
5. Let dough rise for about 1 hour in a cool, dry place
6. Deep fry triangles until golden brown.

Chai ya maziwa (Milk tea)

• 4 cups of whole milk
• 1 cup of water
• 1 tsp. whole black peppercorn
• 1/2 tsp. or 9 whole cloves
• 1 long cinnamon stick (about 4 inches)
• 1 tbsp. whole cardamom pods (opened a bit)
• 1 tbsp. minced ginger
• 4 tbsp. sugar or to taste
• 4 tea bags or 1陆 tbsp. loose black tea leaves

1. Mix all ingredients except tea and milk in a big pan and boil for 6-12 minutes.
2. Add milk and tea.Use medium heat so the milk won糖心传媒檛 get scalded.
3. Boil while stirring, for 2 minutes, then serve.